Experimental investigation on biomass fired dryer for drying of agricultural products

Abstract

This study focuses on the development and performance evaluation of a biomass-fired dryer. The system was designed after considering the needs of small-scale rural entrepreneurs. The designed system consisted of the combustion chamber, drying chamber, the passage of flue gases, flue gas chimney, etc. The thermal performance of the developed system was tested in terms of moisture removal rate, drying rate, thermal efficiency, and heat transfer efficiency. In order to check performance, the dryer was loaded with 4 kg of Coriander leaves having an initial moisture content of 89.40% (w.b.) were dried to the final moisture content of 9.54% (w.b.) in 7 h of operation, 6 kg of babul wood (Acacia nilotica) was consumed during the drying process. The average drying chamber temperature was 51.84°C. The thermal and heat transfer efficiency of the dryer was 28.22 and 56%, respectively. The economic parameters reveal that the developed system is technically viable and economically feasible as the payback period is very low. The net present worth, benefit-cost ratio and payback period were 3398 US$, 2.68 and 0.38 years, respectively.